An inker for a lithographic printing press includes an ink fountain having a rotatable fountain roller for picking up the ink from the fountain. The ink is transferred from the fountain roller by a plurality of ink distribution rollers, which in turn transmit the ink to a plurality of form rollers for applying the ink to the plate cylinder. The ink distribution rollers include vibrating rollers, which are in contact with respective ones of the form rollers and which oscillate axially as they rotate.
"Ghosting" is a common problem encountered in such lithographic printing presses having an inker as described above. The ghosting problem results from ink starvation on certain areas of the plate cylinder. For example, when it is desired to print images in the same color and shade where the image is printed by at least two portions on the plate cylinder, one portion of which extends angularly relative to the other portion, one portion of the image will not be the same shade as the other portion. Thus, a distinct change in color occurs in the image, which is noticeable to the human eye. Typically, the portion of the image which is printed by the ink-receptive plate area of the greatest circumferential extent around the plate cylinder (the circumferential section of the plate cylinder having the greatest percentage of ink-receptive area) is lighter in shade than the other portion of the image and the change in shade occurs along a line.